The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast - Crystal Kung Minkoff On RHOBH, Tips For A Successful Marriage, Reality TV BTS, & The Lion King

Episode Date: March 23, 2023

#554: Crystal Kung Minkoff, mother, culinary expert, businesswoman and star of RHOBH, joins Michael and Lauryn to share her thoughts on Lisa Rina’s departure from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, the reality behind reality TV, her number one tip for a successful marriage, how she launched the largest organic coconut company in the world at age 29.   To connect with Crystal Kung Minkoff click HERE To connect with Lauryn Evarts click HERE To connect with Michael Bosstick click HERE Read More on The Skinny Confidential HERE For Detailed Show Notes visit TSCPODCAST.COM To Call the Him & Her Hotline call: 1-833-SKINNYS (754-6697) This episode is brought to you by The Skinny Confidential This episode is brought to you by AG1 AG1 is way more than greens. It's all of your key multi-vitamins, minerals, pre-and probiotics, and more, working together as one. Go to athleticgreens.com/SKINNY to get a free 1 year supply of vitamin D and 5 free travel packs with your first purchase. This episode is brought to you by Cymbiotika Cymbiotika is a health supplement company, designing sophisticated organic formulations that are scientifically proven to increase vitality and longevity by filling nutritional gaps that result from our modern day diet. Use code SKINNY at checkout to receive 15% off your purchase at cymbiotika.com This episode is brought to you by LMNT LMNT is a tasty electrolyte drink that has everything you need and nothing you don't. It contains a science-backed electrolyte ratio: 1000mg sodium, 200mg potassium, and 60mg magnesium. Get a free sample pack with any purchase at drinkLMNT.com/SKINNY This episode is brought to you by Beekeepers Naturals Beekeepers Naturals is female-founded and the products are clean and effective, third-party tested for all pesticides, and the brand is dedicated to sustainable beekeeping and helping save the bees. Get 20% off your first order at beekeepersnaturals.com/SKINNY or use code SKINNY at checkout. This episode is brought to you by Betterhelp BetterHelp is online therapy that offers video, phone, and even live chat-only therapy sessions. So you don’t have to see anyone on camera if you don’t want to. It's much more affordable than in-person therapy & you can be matched with a therapist in under 48 hours. Our listeners get 10% off their first month at betterhelp.com/skinny . This episode is brought to you by Perfect Snacks Made with freshly-ground nut butter, organic honey and 20 organic superfoods, Perfect Bar has a variety of products that are good to eat and good for you. Go to perfectsnacks.com/skinny to learn how you can receive a perfect bar for free. Produced by Dear Media  

The following podcast is a Dear Media production. Every single morning we take it when we travel. We carry the travel packs and then we have the big bag at home. We put it in a heaping glass of water every single morning. It reminds us also to hydrate. What I love about this is you get all of these nutrients, adaptogens, and vitamins all in one place. It really is your multivitamin for the day. I don't think I could start my day anymore without this. I have been talking about this product for so long on this show because I think it is absolutely incredible.

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offer for you. If you want to take ownership of your health today is a good time to start. Athletic Greens is giving you a free one-year supply of vitamin D and five free travel packs with your first purchase. Go to athleticgreens.com slash skinny. That's athleticgreens.com slash skinny. Check it out, athleticgreens.com slash skinny. She's a lifestyle blogger extraordinaire. Fantastic. And he's a serial entrepreneur. A very smart cookie. And now Lauren Everts and Michael Bostic are bringing you along for the ride. Get ready for some major realness. Welcome to the skinny confidential, him and her. Aha. But I know the moment how I started my disorder and I was in school, they showed a

video about body image and eating disorders and they described how to do it in the video and so I was like oh wow that's how you get skinny this is what people are doing and then I copied it I would do all these diets that was like avoiding food right when you diet and become obsessed with everything you're eating that didn't work and And then I was like, okay, I'm going to not eat. And that didn't, you know, it just got bad. So I was like, you know, maybe I'll learn to love food. And then that was for me. I don't know if that works for everybody, but that worked for me. Crystal Minkoff is on the Skinny Confidential Him and Her show. She is the star of one of my favorite shows, A Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. But the reason that I invited her on the show is because she's very well-rounded. Not only is she the co-founder and CEO of the

organic and sustainable coconut water brand Real Coco, she's also an outspoken advocate for body positivity and mental health awareness. In this episode, we talk about her personal experience of overcoming an eating disorder, her ongoing relationship with food, how it's been to film, her culinary arts, she is so talented in the kitchen, and her marriage to famed director Rob Minkoff. We kind of go everywhere in this episode. She really, really is open and raw and real and vulnerable. I have a lot of respect for her, and I'm so excited for you guys to hear her in this space. If you haven't watched Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, I don't know what to say. Start from the beginning. It's like a wild ride. It's a roller coaster. It's such a

good show. With that, let's welcome Crystal Minkoff to the Skinny Confidential Him and Her Show. This is the Skinny Confidential Him and Her. We have Crystal in the studio. I'm so excited to interview. I've wanted to interview you forever. I am a huge Housewives fan, which is where I first discovered you. And then I did a deep dive before this interview. And I just feel like there's so much more to you that people don't know.

So I wanted to have you on. Thank you. Give us some background of how you grew up before all of housewives being married, being a mother. So I grew up in the valley in Northridge, actually, like down the street from where Garcelle currently lives. Every time we film there, I'm very excited because it's like where I grew up. I went to school in L.A. I went to UC school for college. I'm just like a LA kid through and through. My parents were immigrants from China and met here in the States. And I grew up in a very sort of like middle, middle upper class life. The weekends was very much East LA with my grandparents.

No one spoke English, only Chinese. And then my sort of week long, my weekdays were just like a kid in the valley. And then I met my husband when I was in college and we've been together almost 20 years now. Okay. So I want to go back. So your parents, your parents migrated from China and they met here. Yes. They came separately. Were you able to go to China when you were little? Yeah. So I grew up, my grandparents were still in Taiwan. My mom's side, my, my dad has an incredible history, sad history, but he grew up during the revolution. So his family perished like when he was a child from starvation. I know it's like a crazy story, but so I only knew my mom's side because I didn't grow up with my dad's family, obviously. And so my mom's parents had lived in Taiwan before they emigrated when we were about 10. So I spent all my summers in China. And then I didn't really go back throughout like middle school and high

school because they were all here. And then I started going back. I studied abroad in China and then I bought a home there. Yeah, when I was 23. When you were little and you go to China compared to the United States, was it a jarring difference or no because you were immersed in the culture here? Oh, that's a good question. I mean, because I was with my grandparents, it felt a little bit connected, but it's a culture shock. I mean, I'm an American kid. Spending my summers there was magical, but it was also like I couldn't be with my friends. I didn't have those like my family.

We didn't have the money to like go to like Hawaii and all those things. I mean, I had been there like once. It was like that was our annual trip. You know, if we could, you know, but my dad was a doctor. It wasn't like we didn't have it, but they were not spenders. So going there was sort of an extension of being home, but it was a culture shock. Yeah. And were your parents strict, easy or? What's it like growing up in the Valley? By the way, I have like a hashtag in my head. I always say hashtag 818 stop the hate. The Valley

is amazing. People have a terrible sort of impression of it i don't know why but i love the valley and i don't live in the valley but i say i live valley adjacent because it's called the valley and it just sounds like i feel like the valley's pr has gotten better though because i do hear it coming back and people really into it yeah now there's a tequila brand right yeah a1A yeah the Kardashian oh god again triggering yeah Michael Michael you gotta watch the show

if you don't know what she's talking about listen I am a huge Housewives fan and you know that every time it's on I tune in that is true

that is true listen I you know she's sucked me in over the years I think I'm I'm pretty caught up it's compelling television

isn't it oh my god it's amazing it's hard not to it's hard to look away any man that says that he can look away I don't believe him

I'm like as soon as they say that I'm like nope can never he can look away i don't believe him i'm like as soon as they say that i'm like nope can never do anything with you i don't trust you because i used to watch the show and rob would walk in and he's like why are you watching this i'm like it's just easy and now of course he's so invested he like watches alone like he's in the library and he's like so now when we get the episodes we watch watch it like separately. I mean, all the franchises. Someone that is literally behind The Lion King is watching Real Housewives. That's pretty incredible. Look, you must think it's good cinema. At the end of the day, it's all drama, right?

It is. Yeah, it's conflict resolution. It's definitely conflict resolution. Yes, but he's so funny. He always has like, when he watches it, he's like, when someone has like a crazy line on the show, he's like, oh, I got to figure out how to use that in a movie. There's so many. There's so many, especially if you're a real housewives, like, watcher. Like, there are so many one-liners that are iconic from across the board. Yeah. Let me ask you this. I always wonder

this, and obviously being close and adjacent to this world and, you know, dealing with entertainers, what is the motivation or like what's the thought process when you and your husband think about this opportunity because obviously you're not novice to what takes place on these channels and entertainment and you know the business behind it's like what what are you guys thinking before you go into the franchise yeah so i mean i think we had like kind of one leg up in terms of what to expect. So I was able to, you know, Rob's agent has been with him for 30 years, our lawyers, like all in entertainment. So we really spent a lot of time discussing it with them over months during my interview process. A lot of it was don't do it

because they love us as a family. They didn't want to protect us. At the end of the day, Rob and I knew we would be okay with each other. It wasn't about our relationship. It was what would it expose to our kids. And we knew that they were young enough. They're on social media. They don't watch the show. They're young. But we had a lot of interviewing our friends and, you know, in the business. And when I started filming, so when I was in Tahoe, which was major, that was like my opening. That was a lot. That was my third day of filming ever being on camera. And I called Rob.

I was like, they're in my room. And then he had to call his agent. And we were all confused. I'm like, this is off hours. And then they called me back. They're like, like no this is reality there there's no off hour we were very confused because we leaned into it like it was a production and it is but it's still it's different it's not the same as a scripted show at all you thought it's like it's like when you get to go in your room and close the door the door is closed and that's it and we're done yeah we're done that makes sense i that's that's how i would think that's why we

could never do this it's not it's not it's it's game on all the time well look what happened to lenny in miami lisa and lenny oh yeah mic moment i mean he probably thought no one was listening and he's in his well look if you have a mic on but thing is i didn't have a mic on so i'm like really like shut down for the night and then it kept going so that's when it was like you guys this is like his agent like this is what it is like i'm like okay so then i had to go back in and you know what i would do this is what i would do get some mouth tape like mouth tape that you can tape your mouth shut when you're sleeping and put it on when you go in the room so they're not good they know because you know i i take my mouth shut when i'm sleeping it's really good for your breathing it's really good she's a big thing on this well it's actually become like a big thing

every night for the last four months well they what happened is they choice yeah are you okay with that well they've done well yeah i mean it's like what sometimes i just had it for me the other night because i forgot it honestly sometimes just in the, I'll just pass over the mouth tape too. Oh my God. No, I'm just kidding. But here's going to be so... Rob's going to love this. But no, they found...

They did this whole study on mouth breathers versus nose breathers. And you want to be a nose breather because obviously it keeps your jaw in place and it's better for your immune system, all these things. And they basically studied these two twins. I'm going to butcher this. And one was a nose breather, one was a mouth breather. And over time, it just distorts your face and ruins your breathing. You get worse

Sleep, you know, like if you're if you're not breathing through your nose It is better breath if you tape your mouth shut is not in the right place So think about things but the point of this is is what I was saying is when next time you're on a trip Put some mouth tape. Okay, because they're gonna know she can't talk with mouth tape and she's going to bed It's like signals like there's an under I don't think they care. I think they'd film that too. They're going to film me with the mouth tape. Do you realize how crazy I'm going to look? Then put Real Coco's Instagram

on. Is it just tape? No, it's like a specific... I'll show you before you leave. It's like a specific brand. It's B1O, I think, and it's amazing. Okay. It works. That's just a tangent. Fascinating. Let's go back.

Okay, sorry. But if you're not a mouth breather, and you don't have that issue, then you just would never know. I'm not a mouth breather. I'm a nose breather, too. I don't know. I'm not sure.

No, I bet you're a nose breather. You definitely don't have the issue. Yeah. Taylor, you're for sure a mouth breather. Just so you know, Taylor back there is for sure a mouth breather. Okay. So, your brother is a famous pop star is that correct yes in china in china okay how old were

you guys when this happened and how did he even go about this if you guys are living here yeah easy easy so my brother went to michigan and i went to uc irvine when he went to michigan he studied abroad in china and when i was at irvine studied abroad in China. It was just what you do as Chinese kids, right? Like you go back. He never came home from studying abroad. He was at Michigan studying business and then went to China and then somehow, long story, got a record deal and then called my mom. My mom's like, over my dead body. What are you talking about? And then I think as I just started dating Rob and then my mom, you know, I grew up in a pretty Chinese household.

And I think then she saw like, oh, maybe you can have a career in the arts. It was all arts to her, right? Directing, singing, singing whatever which is not something you naturally do in an asian household this is not unless you unless your parents are in the arts right my parents were not so she said okay you can record an album but you got to finish michigan so he flew back for the summer and finished a year and a half of school in the summer. He just like killed it and went back, recorded an album, and won MTV Best New Artist Asia. And what happens to his life?

Does it just blow up? He can't like get a moment alone anymore? No, it's like, I mean, it's been 20 years. So like, you know, pop stars have their peak and whatever. So at that time it was, but he was, he started at an era of China where like things were opening up. So he really grew with the country and it was, it was very exciting. So then that's why, so Rob and I bought a place there a couple of years after.

So we started spending a lot of time there too. I think he has like five or six albums. I don't know. It was so out of sight out of mind though because I was living in LA and I was like, so he called, he's like, oh, you know, I got to call you back. I'm filming like, you know,

a music video. I'm like, okay, bye. Like it was so distant and random to me. It wasn't. That makes sense because Michael took me

to Beijing when we first started dating. Oh, okay. And I was in the cab. See the way they looked at her over there. I liked it. I felt famous.

Yeah. Well, you are. You are just by nature famous there. She came out, new boob job. They were like, what's happening here? But I was making friends with our cab driver and asking her all about the Kardashians and she had no idea. Oh, no.

And so that makes sense to me that you're saying that you were separated from your brother's success because it is so separated yeah I mean it's it's its own country its own language he sings in Chinese so when I go there it was fun you know so I got sort of a glimpse into like the Hollywood of China but it's different than here he the states have a they respond to celebrity differently what do you mean like in china it's more managed and it's also like it's more wholesome here it's like more they don't yeah and they're also like they like they want to see people crash and burn here it's not like that in china i was just talking to someone about that. I was just talking about how people build you up to tear you down to then neutralize you. It's so

interesting. When I ever see a famous Instagram or TikTok or go super viral, you'll notice the human nature is then to tear it down. And they do this in housewives too. And then they neutralize you. So it's like it is an interesting thing that's really prominent in America.

There's a famous Chinese director, Zhang Zhezong. I'm not saying his name, but he moved next door to my parents. You're not saying his name right at all. Zhang is his first name. He produced such a show. It's close. It's like the Game of Thrones of China. Like it's something the monkey king or monkey.

And he produced it. And he's like the Spielberg over there. But he moved over here because over there, he's like, you can't walk the streets. But he said it's all what he was telling me. He said it's so safe and it's like people admire him. Yeah. But he comes here and he's like, nobody knows who he is. Yeah.

Like he's in the grocery store and they have no, like Americans have no clue. And over there he's like the king, right? Totally. But that's why I laugh at my brother because in China he like would run. Like, you know, he started when he was 20. So he was like running the clubs and he was everywhere. And like here here he's like outside waiting in line for like an hour I'm like no one gives a shit about you yeah like and I'm like it humbles you a little bit he's like I can't get in anywhere I'm like whatever no one gives a shit about you that's amazing really funny yeah

at what point and where and when and you talked a little bit about this on Juicy Scoop, did you meet Rob? So I met him in 2003. It was the end of my sophomore year. And he was directing Haunted Mansion for Disney right around the corner. He was having a birthday party for his friend. And my friend knew the person who's having the birthday party. She was invited. And were you expecting anything out of this night or was this one of those nights you just threw it together yeah I was like not I just I was at Irvine and I drove down and and I was not like a party girl at all I was like very straight-laced and I really am still like I just came down to go out with my friend and at a birthday party and then I met Rob and he's social until he's not. And then it was like,

oh, I get it. So he's not. Yeah. He's like a classic artist like this, Rob. And so he was just sitting, he had a piano in his office and he was just kind of like playing piano on his own. And it's so funny because that's how we met because he was like not engaging with anybody. But like, it's the thing that drives me crazy as a husband. I'm like, food tension, you know. But because he was like that, I just ended up sitting with him. And we were like, because I didn't know anybody. And I was so young. And then we were just talking. And then we just kept talking. And we've been together ever since. And had you already launched your business? Or this is way after? No, I launched my business when I was 29.

So when you guys got together, how long did you guys wait to have kids? I'm just trying to get the whole lay of the land. So 2003, we got married 2007. We waited almost five years

to get married. And then we waited another. So I didn't have Max until 2012. Michael and I did that. I think that's nice. It's great. You get to have a life

with someone first. Oh, yeah. We had 10 years together without. Isn't that nice to have? Yeah. Because you need to, I mean, look, need whatever that word is. Like, I know what it's like to live my life with him in a very meaningful way without kids. Yep.

Because I think that can be a struggle. Like, the kid thing adds a whole other element of stress and dynamic change and all that. And so, I get to refer back to it. And so something that Rob and I always do every year is we obviously travel the kids a lot, but we take a two-week trip out of the country to a new country every year together alone. And we've done that since the kids, I mean, Max was one years old. I was going to ask you about that because we have young kids. I'm like, what is that the move? You just go, that's the move you go for two weeks two weeks and they're fine

12 to 14 days yes and they're fine we went to machu picchu we do all these things at first i was like oh i don't want to go there because i want to bring the kids and it's and rob is the type he's like you'll go again he's very forward thinking and he doesn't believe in like, he's just like, we'll go next year. It doesn't matter. He sounds like he doesn't have the box around him. No, he does not. But he's an animator. You know, he's like, he creates, he's a dreamer.

He's a creator. So he's just like, no, we go. And I'm like, okay, great. So I don't feel like guilty anymore. It's like, we'll take them when they care, you know, but yes, that's the, that's, you gotta go away. They'll be fine. We've been going away for like maybe three, four days max. I get four days max it's hard you get to stretch it a little bit yeah but i have family here yeah lucy lives with us so they have a lot of the same that they're and and our kids

do not like they're fine when we leave they're not like that's hard when i see kids like crying when they walk out and then the parents walk out the the house. They're like, bye, see you. They'll FaceTime me. You can tell your kids are independent on the show. They're independent. No, that's good. I think that's amazing. Yeah, it's great. It's great.

For anyone who's listening that doesn't have context of who your husband is, can you explain it? I don't think I'm going to do it eloquently. There's so much. I don't know where you want me to start. Rob is a director, and he started his career at Disney, and he directed, his first full feature was The Lion King. That's a good first. Yeah, a good first.

Not a bad first. Yeah. When you say he directed, like, explain that with a cartoon, because my brain doesn't understand that. Yeah, he gets that question all the time, so I've heard him answer this. Okay. Each department runs a character, like Simba's a department,

you know, Mufasa's department, and also the landscape and color. And so he will literally have a meeting every 15 minutes. So if you see his calendar, it's bananas. And so the lead of like Simba will come in and they have a team of maybe 30 people. And so his job is to make sure everything is coherent because everyone's drawing something separately, right? So it's like everyone has

their own literally pen or paintbrush and he needs to make one drawing at the end of the day. And so he's making sure everything works together coherently for, it takes like two years to do. So someone who draws Simba, Mufasa is a different drawer. Yes. Even though they, and they have a whole team on their own. Nothing looks disjointed. Correct. That's his job, is to join them. So he's

making it seamless. Yes. That's so interesting though, because if you were to ask me, I would say it's the same animator everywhere, because it does look the same. Yeah, yeah. That's so interesting, though, because if you were to ask me, I would say it's the same animator everywhere because it does look the same. Yeah, yeah. That's crazy. And it's interesting when he does live action, he's like, you know, you have to deal with people who are actors who are adjusting and, you know, their own personality. Where animation, like every lash, every blink is designed.

Oh, my gosh. And so it's, yeah, that's why it takes so long. So Lion King, Haunted Mansion, he's done. Stuart Little's. Stuart Little gosh. And so it's, yeah, that's why it takes so long. So Lion King, Haunted Mansion, he's done. Stuart Little's. Stuart Little's. Yeah. I'm going to show Zaza Stuart Little's. I haven't showed her that yet. Symbiotica, one of our favorite brands on the planet. We just had Chervene, the founder of Symbiotica on this show for the fourth time. I think it's a record. We were trying to figure that out on the show. How many other guests have been on four times?

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slash skinny. Try it totally risk-free. If you don't like it, share it with a salty friend and they will give you your money back. No questions asked. You have nothing to lose. drinkelement.com slash skinny. You decide to launch, I believe with your brother, Real Coco. Yes. Okay. How does that come about? Why do you decide to do that? Yeah. So Jeff was in China and my best friend, actually, when I, when Jeff was studying abroad, I brought my best friend from high school to visit my brother in China. He ended up also just learning. He's like white, but he like learned Chinese. He saw the future of China, ended up moving there. And he called my brother and he's like, I have access to, he was starting to do like

manufacturing and he called Jeff and he said, you know, do you want to start this brand? And then my brother wanted to cross it over to the States because we were getting our coconuts from Southeast Asia. So then I came on board and we started this brand when I was 29. Yeah, it's amazing. We're actually this largest organic coconut company in the world right now. Wow, good for you.

I know. You got to brag a little bit. I did. You got to brag about, you were talking about Costco, about Costco, like what you guys did there about stocking the shelves.

Like really, like, I mean, I was impressed with what you were saying. Thank you. There's a lot to it. Thank you. Can you tell me a little bit more of the business, the behind the scenes of what it's doing? You know, it was really kind of exciting to have an Asian-based company. But at the end of the day, like, I wanted to also expand to the States.

And so we started in China primarily in their,'s called bhg which is like their whole foods we got very like you know it's always it's hard to get shelf space to begin with is that a bigger market or is this a bigger market i would say us is a big market us is a big china's big it's our second largest it's like movies right like america's always number one and then i heard that's gonna flip soon though i mean it's like it's it will yeah it will i mean with covid we'll like you know we'll see but it's it was that was on the track to happen it's interesting because plant-based products were starting it's actually very new right here like soy milk and then almond milk and then i think soy has really kind of had its it's ran its course i think soy done. I don't think it's good for us men. It's not good. So what I loved about coconuts, it's the most sustainable nut-based water in

the world. And so we don't have to put sprinklers. Everything is naturally recycled through rainwater. And so for us, even that was like, our costs came down. We didn't take any investment. We just did it ourselves. Oh, that's hard. Very hard. We have no debt. And we were like, let's just try this like grassroots job because Jeff was still singing. We all had our own stuff going on.

So it wasn't like all eggs and, you know, we weren't like putting up our houses for this, you know, but it took a long time where I think other brands would have grown maybe more quickly or could have died quickly. We just kept pushing and Costco, we had a couple products at Costco, but now we're in every region other than Texas, but that's coming this year. So we're going to be in 100% of Costco's this year, which is wild. That is insane. That's insane. And I'm a big Costco shopper. And I always, when I look at your Instagram, I look at like all the drinks that you're making with this.

She makes like the best food, which I want to ask you about in a second. But you make like cocktails with this. Tell Lauren about food because if I get one home-cooked meal in the next 10 years, it'll be a miracle. This is where I'm really going to help you then. Well, I fell in love with cooking when I, in like i my mom didn't cook i'm sorry mom's truth she doesn't cook it was i was a costco baby like everything was microwaved and frozen but all our friends moms seemed to cook and so jeff and i would go to our front like next door and they would feed us all this like great food so my brother and i both love to cook i think it's

like skips a generation you know and yeah because, because you know what? Her parents, both mom and dad were phenomenal. And their dad's in the restaurant business. So I guess I just, I get the skips. Skips, yeah. So your kids will, you know, they'll cook. But like my mom didn't. And so like, I really wanted that. So, and then Food Network was really sort of on the rise

and getting popular. So it was like my background TV. We'd only watch World Pork Couture and Food Network. That's it, like around the clock. And then I was like starting to cook, like trying recipes. background TV. We'd only watch World Pork Couture and Food Network. That's it. Around the clock. And then I was like starting to cook, like trying recipes. And I remember the moment where I was like, I want to go to Farmer's Market and just see what's fresh and see if I can make something. And it was like an utter fail. Like I just did not know what to do other than reading a book. Like I was a science major, you know? And so what what I did was because I liked school as I went to

culinary school and I was like you're telling me oh let me go to culinary school yeah why why you what am I supposed to do with two kids I have to go to culinary school why I didn't have kids yet okay listen I need you this was I might have missed the boat this is that five-year awesome I need you to get back okay so you went, so you went to culinary school? Yeah. I bet that would be fun, though. It was amazing. Because I still have nightmares about waking up and doing tests. I hated school. I was the worst.

I think I got kicked out of every school I ever went into. But that school, I feel like I could get behind. You don't fail. Yeah. You're going to make great food. Yeah. They literally taught you everything on how to cook. Yeah.

So I went to a French-based school. You know, a lot of people, I wouldn't say everybody, but a lot of people can do any recipe because you just follow the instructions. But what culinary school teaches you the base of food. So it's like, this is your heat source. This is your protein source. And then how do you cook it from there? Everything about flavors is like your own

design, right? Like, so you're talking about roasting, braising, sauteing, like every base level. And how does a protein affect, how is it affected by the heat source? That's how I think about it. I'm like, it's like science to me. And then it's like, do you use water? Do you use like all those added liquid sources? How that work and so I was just fascinated by it and I had so much fun and I think that's what leaned that's what got me into starting a food product like real cocoa because I also loved watching there was a show called unwrapped and it was like it was literally a 30-minute show about food factories and I would watch it oh I'm like oh I dreamt of having a food factory and I think that's why I brought I mean I don't have a factory here

my factory is in Asia but I just love the like factory line of like I just loved all that so yeah that's why I started let me ask you this what is the time commitment if you just wanted like a base level of cooking skill yeah I was just gonna ask can you go at night like because I know there's love obviously Obviously, there's levels. Were you going nine to five? Yeah, I did a full program a year. You did nine to five, five days a week. No, but say someone like me gets injured.

I'm like, hey, I want to go and just learn exactly what you're talking about. The basics, the heat. And I want to be able to come out and put a basic dish together at any time, but better than what the average show. I think there's probably like six week programs that you could do it like once a week at night well maybe we should do that might be fun to do together because i do remember there was people in my program

that were like chefs already at restaurants but they wanted to become executive chefs so they needed the degree so they would come like they they were on a different night program huh but i was like free as a bird i was like whatever so i because i was i didn't work that year because we were about to move to china for a movie rob was directing we were going to think about kids and the whole thing so i'm gonna take this year off and just go to culinary school i mean it's obviously no it's a luxury it's a luxury it's paid off i might pause this whole operation and just go to culinary school until everyone in this office this office, I'm going to say, guys, listen, I'll be back in a year. I got to go learn how to cook some stuff.

By the way, then you get out of your own factory. I would love if you learned how to cook. I'll sit there and you can cook for me. By the way, my husband's very happy with it too. You have been so open on the show about your journey with food in a different way. You've talked about being bulimic, which I really appreciated because there's a lot of housewives that are not vulnerable like that. And I think that that was your point the whole season you were trying to say. There's an undertone. You were trying to be like a lot of you guys,

maybe not just Beverly Hills, are not being vulnerable. So I'm going to open up. And I found that refreshing and youthful. Thank you. I'm just by... Refreshing and youthful. Millennially. Like, yeah, I know. Thank you for saying that. I'm by nature very vulnerable. I'm by nature very open.

Because I've gotten to a place where I'm no longer feeling shame about it and feeling embarrassed by it. Because I know there's so many people that experience it and suffer every day and like they shouldn't feel shameful for about it. So when I, so it's like the idea of where you're like, take your own advice. I'm like, I'm, I'm taking my own advice, right. That I would give to someone like, don't feel bad about it. But actually the cooking thing is very, people don't understand that They're like, how do you cook and you have this disorder? It actually is all encompassing because I wanted to also appreciate food where I hated it. It was like the enemy to me. Every time I'd go out, it was like, I would look at the menu and I'd suffer about it. Where now that I know how to cook,

it's like nourishing me and it has really helped my progress and my recovery. I know. And I didn't know it was that strong then. It was sort of just, it was like, I was just like throwing darts, you know, and like, maybe this will help me like, because I would avoid food. I remember thinking like, I would do all these diets that was like avoiding food, right? Eat broccoli with boiled chicken. When you diet and become obsessed with everything you're eating, that didn't work. And then I was like, okay, I'm going to not eat. And that didn't,

you know, it just got bad. So I was like, you know, maybe I'll learn to love food. And then that was for me. I don't know if that works for everybody, but that worked for me. Was there a point in your life or an event that triggered this? Like that basically made you start having this relationship with food in an unhealthy way? Like, do you remember something specifically? Yeah, I do. I do. I'm sure it was somewhere already. I don't think anything, one thing can just trigger out of nowhere, but I know the moment how I started my disorder and I was in school. And when you go to like, they have like sex ed,

they have like all that like home ec stuff. They showed a video about body image and eating disorders and they described how to do it in the video, which I'm sure is no longer shown in schools. I remember that. I saw that. I know what you're talking about. And so I was like, oh, well, that's how you get skinny.

This is what people are doing. And then I copied it that day. And that was it. There was one that they showed too that actually showed the girl throwing up after a meal. It was like a movie or something. Oh, yeah, there was a movie. Oh, I remember that. Like a reenactment of like... I remember that. So you learn by example. i have two sisters right in

the movie it was i didn't watch the movie ours was very specifically it was like to not do it it was like a it was a reenact it was like they showed it in class and so they showed a lot of different things in class like even say like even saying it i don't want to say the words because i don't want to share it with people who haven't heard it you know like that's what scares me because that's how i learned it but there were all these different things that they showed us that people did which is supposed to scare us right remember they showed us the dare like the drug videos which scared me that worked for me this one went the opposite direction for me. So then I, whatever it was breeding in me, now I had an outlet, an actual outlet. And that's what happened to me.

You know, what's so funny you said about the dare videos too, is like, we've had people come on and say the opposite, right? Like the dare videos actually encourage them, right? So it's same thing here, right? Yeah. I think they've, hopefully they've learned a bit. I don't think you can actually just scare people into or scare people into or out of action, right? Right, because everyone's different. So each, everyone's going to pick up, learn something, negate something. There's not one way. And the intention was positive.

It wasn't like they designed to do this. But in my case, I know that I'm not the only one that that happened to. When you start down this journey of having a disorder, do you know right away it's a disorder? Or does it take five years? Or does it take 10 years? What is it like to be encompassed by this? I mean, I can imagine it's a lot. Well, I was 11.

So at 11, I don't even know if I knew the word disorder. It was just a response to a feeling. That's all. Like when you're a kid, you just, you want to do whatever makes as a child is positive because it gave you something positive. And that's why it's hard to break those things. Because at the time, it was masking or giving you something that you were missing in your life or whatever it was. And it's a coping mechanism. So that's why it's hard to let go. And now it's a negative thing. But that's why habits are hard to let go. And now it's a negative thing, but that's why habits are hard to break because it's

familiar. Yeah. A lot of people who have come on here who've talked about an eating disorder or talked about when they throw up, and I think you might have actually said this on the show too, that there's a relief, a release that comes with it. So to me, when I heard that, I would think it'd be easy to become addicted to the release. Yes. It's almost like picking up a drink when to become addicted to the release. Yes. It's almost like

picking up a drink when you're stressed out. Yes. Yes. So everyone has their own thing. It's just bulimia. And it's even hard to say the word, but it's a very, people don't like to talk about it. It seems dirty. It's like the bad one of all those things. But yes, there is like I would have anxiety feeling full. That's just my thing and then yes as you start to like get used to that then your anxiety get grows and then the release feeling grows you know just so you have to like figure out a way everyone's journey is different but that's why the cooking thing was so massive for me because i tried to then take the feeling of being full as a positive thing. Huh. That's smart. Because it was good for me.

The love you're putting into the food too. Yes. Yes. Yeah. It makes sense to me. It's a wild journey for me, but that's where it was. I think it's incredible that you spoke out about it. I think that there is a taboo around it. What was the backlash when you did it? Maybe I missed it. There wasn't backlash. No backlash against me.

I bet you had thousands of DMs that were good. I'm talking about the women on the show. Do you have two days? Oh. I'll let you say what... I have my own opinion, but you say what you remember. What's your video, though?

I think it was approached... This is really weird what I'm going to say. They felt really old to me, the way they approached it. It was like- Oh, that's going to win us some friends, Lauren. Keep going. Old is maybe the wrong word. It's almost like they were scared to talk about it. Maybe it's like, I feel the previous generations hid a lot of shame and won't talk about a lot of things that many- Yes, that's exactly what I'm trying to say. They won't talk about a lot. All of us grew up with this like there's a certain part yes of the human condition that was off limits until recently yes that makes sense yes like so many things that we talk about on

this show like people in the beginning like oh this is so taboo and like well and that's yeah we need to talk about it yeah and so a lot i feel like it's a generational thing where some of those taboo subjects are like whoa whoa whoa it's off, it's off limits. That's exactly the undertone of it. It was a reflection of them. Instead of looking at it from your perspective and putting themselves in your shoes, it brought out something in them that they didn't want to look at. It's almost like, whoa, whoa, whoa, why are you bringing this real issues up? Here's the thing that I always tell everyone. The audience is way smarter than anything i'm so happy to hear you guys talking about that because it's

so hard to experience it and also watch it back because it was almost like they didn't believe me and if they did it was like you're not allowed to have this experience and i'm like i i don't even know what to tell you it's like my hair's black like Like I can't like this is it. Like it's it's a factual situation. But there was a lot of questioning and what felt like shaming. But again, I because I'm so kind of long and deep in on them. And like I cannot accept that because at the end of the day, I go home to my life, to my body, to my experience, my person. And like there's not any show that is going to get in the way of my recovery. So I was like I just like pushed it away. The Skinny Confidential Him and Her Show is brought to you by BetterHelp. All right, therapy. So many people have benefited from therapy. I know that therapy is definitely a tool in my toolbox that has really helped me in the past, but to be able to do it entirely online

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And I just think it's a great way to get to know yourself better. It gives you sort of a sense of self-awareness, in my opinion. And it's also an outside perspective that's not so close to your life, right? It's giving you a different perspective. It's a more stepped-back perspective than getting advice from a loved one or a family member or a partner. So of course, we have a code for you. Discover your potential with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com slash skinny today and you get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp, H-E-L-P dot com slash skinny. You can hear it in my voice right now. I am a little under the weather, which is not fun, but I'm not that mad about it because I have

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I keep them out of reach and in it, I definitely have my propolis spray and the specific syrup for a cough and a cold. You got to try it. Today, Beekeepers Naturals is offering you an exclusive offer. You're going to go to beekeepersnaturals.com slash skinny or intercode skinny. You get 20% off your first order. That's B-E-E-K-E-E-P-E-R-S-N-A-T-U-R-A-L-S dot com slash skinny or intercode skinny. Beekeepers Naturals products are also available at Target, Whole Foods, CVS, and Walgreens. Start feeling better every day today. If you've been listening to the show and you have not tried Perfect Bar, you are missing out. We are obsessed at my house with the dark chocolate chip peanut butter with sea salt.

It's crunchy, it's perfect, it's creamy cookie dough texture, and it's absolutely insane when you put it in the fridge. But the best part of it, and the reason I can't stop talking about these bars, is it has 17 grams of protein. So if you're with a partner who gets a little hangry, these are perfect to satisfy a little crunch, a little chew, and also just fill them up, if you know what I mean, in a quick, efficient way. They also have bars for kids. I like to give them to Zaza that have six grams of protein. She thinks she's like getting a cookie because they taste so good. The other flavors that I like, if you're going to get other flavors, are the dark chocolate chip peanut butter, the coconut peanut butter, and the cookie dough.

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franchises just get caught up too much in the show and it becomes too much of their real life? Of course. Yeah. Yes. No, I think you have to go into it, not allowing it to penetrate. And I think that speaks to how far you've come within your recovery. I mean, to be able to sort of have a boundary around it. Yeah. You remember the scene, I think, when Erica comes up to her and starts talking about, like, laxatives and she's drunk. Did you remember that or no?

I tune in, but I remember... Yeah, like pockets of it. Yeah, pockets of it. I mean, that was... Right, highly insensitive. But then I think about her, you know, where people are like, why didn't you blast her for that? Because you have to have empathy for her.

I have empathy because it's like the moment where you're like, when did you know? And I'm like, I don't think she realizes that she maybe suffers through one too. Like taking laxatives is a form of an eating disorder because when my best friends suffer through that, I would never shame someone that what I'm going through, even though she's being highly insensitive. I think it's pure ignorance. I don't think it was like. So do I.

Yeah. So do I. But what I think the most important moral of all this story is that the audience does have the ability to see what's happening. Do you know what I mean? And I think that that's smart that you went home and you didn't want to penetrate. I think the audience. Yeah, I didn't. I just.

It stings in the moment for a second. I can't i'm not going to be like that didn't like i'm a human and i feel those things the actual moment i felt it was i felt embarrassed that's the experience in that moment someone says that to you you're like you feel sort of like weirdly on display and you're on a show. So I understand that's the whole idea, but like, because it's so personal, that's why I just sort of retreat. And then like, and then I don't allow that in, but it, yeah, it stings sometimes. Do you think that one of the reasons that people were uncomfortable because you decided to open up about something that was so personal and so vulnerable and maybe that exposed that other people weren't opening up

about things that were vulnerable in their own lives? Yeah mean i think it's hard to go there but i also think it's such a foreign concept if you really don't suffer through it like it's i think it's very i don't think people want to understand it it's it feels a little bit heavy and i don't think we want to touch that subject for some reason. Well, I want to touch it in the sense that I want to say if someone's listening and they're struggling, is there anything that you, a tool in your toolbox that's really helped? Is it a bunch of different things? Is there any, I don't want to say tips, but any takeaways that you've learned through

this experience to give to someone who may need them? I mean, I've got, like I said, I got thousands of DMs about it. I got so many that people said, I got a lot that said, I never knew I had an eating disorder until everything you were describing is what I go through. I got a lot of,

I've never said it out loud to one person in my life. I've had it for 30 years. Like people really shared with me. And I just think it's one day at a time. And if you feel successful in a day, great. And if you fail the next day, it's not a failure at all. Like it is a long-term process to get through. It's always a health hazard. But if you really feel like it's that point, it's like try to seek help. There's a lot of avenues. I mean, there's a lot of different associations that people can reach out to, but it's scary. I mean, it's a scary thing to talk about. I didn't talk about it for so long.

I mean, my friends knew. I mean, your close friends know. If you're around people, they can tell. And a really good friend will bring it up. But there's a lot of resources. But people can just message me. I talk to everybody about it. If you DM me about that, we're talking. Oh, my God. Wow. Yeah. Be careful what you wish for. It's a lot. I know. It's a lot. Oh, my gosh. That's incredible. I think the more you talk about it, it sounds like you want to be more active in helping people recover. And I think that's where this all started, which is so crazy as it started with Housewives. It seems like.

I know. I never thought, I never thought in my life, like it was not something I was going to talk about. I think it's great. I think it's great. So hindsight, you go back in time, you doing the show or you're not doing the show? How are we feeling about it at this point? I mean, every day I go back and forth, you know, it's uprooted my life in the craze. I have a very, I'm very lucky. I have very great

normal life. But here's the way I think about this. We get to do this and curate this. We've done it for seven years and we've had all sorts of, we get to talk to people like you and all these people, but it's this thing that we control and it's environment that we can kind of turn up or turn down. And people kind of, you know, they don't feel maybe as entitled to what we're doing in our life as maybe they do to someone in your position. Like I watch, like we have all these people that come on these shows and I feel like the microscope that you guys get put under once you go, it's, it's gotta be intense in a different way, even than like an actor or a traditional celebrity.

It's like, because there's still a little bit, but like people feel entitled to know every aspect of everything you're doing. Yes, it's true. And I have a lot of empathy for that concept when people expect that. Because I know as a viewer of random shows, like I feel that way. And I have to check myself all the time. But I understand why, you of random shows, like I feel that way. And I keep, I have to check myself all the time, but I understand why, you know, they feel like you signed up. Now we get to just scrutinize all day long. It's hard, but because I have, I have a very big life

and very normal life. I have a ton of friends. I'm from here. So when I can shut it off and go back to that, whereas like, I think a lot of people can't, it all gets blended into their lives and it becomes, it takes over them. Like I would have never done it had I felt like it would have been too much chaos in my family. And that grounds me when I go back to it.

But I've been with Rob for so long. So I've seen sort of the other side of the business. And so it doesn't, I think I'm less affected. And this is a kind of a protective environment here in Los Angeles. Yes, it is. Because we moved out to Texas part-time.

Now we're there full-time, right? Okay. And it's a different environment, right? In LA, I feel like it's, it's a little bubble where if you're,

if you've been here and you're used to it, you kind of know what to expect. Like everybody's in the business. I grew up friends who are actors. When I was in school, they'd be gone for two weeks filming. Like you sort of see that and then you get desensitized to it.

Yeah. And in a way, I remember Lauren, I remember you're sitting down and like Oprah went for your sitting down. And nobody, everyone's kind of like, okay,

like, but if you prop Oprah out in the middle of Texas. Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. If Oprah was here.

No, but she's still, I mean, that's a true story. That's a true story. No, but she's still, I mean, but people are being normal. No, what he's saying is because Oprah was there, it's like, you can't think you're,

you're great if Oprah's sitting over there, you know what I mean? Like, you're going to think like, that's not only what I'm saying. I'm saying people, even though he was like, listen,

everyone is aware that Oprah's there. Yeah. Yeah. You're going to keep it together more. But if Oprah's popped up in some other places, like it's just not, it's mob. It's not happening. Yeah, exactly. some other places like it's just not it's yeah exactly so yeah so it's just it's all relative but my friends a big listener so when she hears that oprah i love you um but my friends i grew up with keep me very humble

they do not give me an inch ever that's's important. Yes, and I love it. I love it, yes. What do you think about the announcement of Lisa Renna after eight seasons? Michael doesn't know this. She's off the show. She's done? It's happened yesterday. It happened yesterday, yes.

By choice? What is your vibe? Crystal's probably not going to say. I'm going to say just seeing. By choice? I think that it's a mutual decision yeah but i think when you're when you mutually decide to part ways it's a choice that the network allows you to say to announce it's a mutual decision here's the thing only she knows

right and only the network knows i don't dive deep into that I think I wasn't really worried about anybody else I was just thinking about what's my situation and like I am very good at managing my anxiety I don't have I don't have a lot of anxiety but this is like this the show has brought a lot of anxiety to my life to be honest I would be in a straitjacket so yeah so i've managed so i'm like okay like i don't i have lived the last few months because we've we wrapped it aired and no one's gotten their contracts yet so i've just like lived my life and when it happens it happens so i was i was not thinking really about everybody else i'm always curious but i'm like okay so i just like if i get picked up then who who am I working with? So when I saw that, I was like it was more about like, oh, my God, it's like happening. The next season's

happening. I'm like, oh, God. So I think that she was she's been a great housewife. I mean, I like I said, I used to watch. I walked onto there. She was real. I met her literally randomly a week before my first week of shooting. Very warm and was like, if you need anything, you know, I'm here for you. It's this crazy situation. It's a crazy job. Am I surprised? Yeah.

Like, I thought she was. I'm surprised. I thought she would defy. I loved her as a housewife because she has a huge personality and she brings it one thing that i also was saying earlier today is it's like i really think she approaches it as a job she's a pro i mean yes back when she's even going she understands that with the job there needs to be a heightened sense of drama right so she brings it and i think i think maybe this year maybe it was too much for the audience I'm not talking about me I was like I was like okay like this is this is our job but but this is this goes back to what you were saying about building people up and then breaking them down so I think what

people have to remember and again this is like everyone has their opinions of how she handled things and whatever because I I just it's not my personality. I'm not, I'm not like that. But when you glorify and you constantly praise people and then they level up because it's by nature, you're going to now try to reach that expectation. And then you're like too much, like, what are they supposed to do? You know? And that's the society that we're in now, right? You build, build, build. And it's like, we don't like this, that one step up and we're going to break you down.

So that's why for me, it's a lesson that is, I'm just always going to be myself. I can't listen to anybody outside in the world. I can't fall into that trap because at the end of the day, I need to just go home and go to bed and feel good about myself. And so it's surprising. It's not. There's a lot of chatter. But if she was back on

again this year, it wouldn't have surprised me at all. I'm looking so forward to seeing who the rest of the cast is. I'm going to predict that you're going to get cast again. That's my prediction. Now I'm like very... So I have this weird thing. Who do you think is coming back if he's not? You, Kyle, Dorit, Kathy. I don't know about that. I'm just saying when I have people that are on these properties on the show, now

I'm more vested because now I know you. Right, right, right. Now you're going to watch me in a different way. I'm going to be yelling at the TV if anyone's mean to you. I'm going to be like, hey. Thank you. Yeah, I'm going to be screaming. I'm going to be writing. I'm going to get on these blogs. I'm going to go on all these channels but i quit it before we go i have to ask this question yeah what do you put the lion king soundtrack on every single morning for your kids why that's weird oh my god i would do it every single morning if i was married to rob that's literally like me like packing real coke on their lunchbox. We're like low-key about it.

When my children are born, I put the song on and I hold them up. Well, you're allowed to. And by the way, we love seeing people messages. That's been around for, it's been 25 years, right?

It's amazing. Almost 30 years. No, that would be really weird. What's the coolest souvenir you have? You guys probably have some cool souvenirs in your house.

What's the coolest one? It was actually shown on the show, which I love. souvenirs in your house. What's the coolest one? It was actually shown on the show which I love. It's in our library. It's the original clay designs of the characters. But one of my favorite things is actually from Stuart Little. So they used a model of the plane and

a little character and it's the size of this table. And it's in our theater and it's like this big plain that's cool wait when she says her theater too

is this the underground yeah okay tell you gotta tell them about the underground it's like a real theater movie theater we have movie theater

no no no but this is like you guys did it on the show and it started as this one iteration and turned into something else and now it's like a a craft cocktail bar this is not like a like and we's like a craft cocktail bar. This is not like a like.

And we have like a very cool golf simulator, which is awesome. Yeah, this is like a normal theater. Yeah, it's awesome. I would watch The Lion King every day in there. I'm just saying. Yeah, we've seen it a couple of times. But I was at the Pantages yesterday

and like Lion King is coming back. Like they're doing another run here, the show. And my friend was like, oh, we're going to come. Like, I can't watch it again. You've done it. I'm, I'm,

yeah. It's, it's, by the way, it's awesome. Movie, the show, everything is great,

but it's, it's a lot. Your husband's like, enough already. It's a lot. Yeah. But at the end of the day, he's so,

I mean, he's like, I can't believe it's like my legacy. Like, he's so, it's great. It's iconic. It's one of those, one of those those from Lion King to Real Housewives.

Crystal, I'm so excited to see you in the next season. I know you're going to be on. Come back anytime. Thank you so much. Where can everyone find you and buy a real cocoa? Pimp yourself out. OK, I'm at Crystal Kugminkoff on social and you can find real cocoa in any Costco and on Amazon or my website. enjoyrealcoco.com.

I love it. And you guys, organic, pure, fat-free, gluten-free, delicious. I mean, your cocktails. I was drinking them the whole time. Isn't it good? Yeah, I mean, like I said, I just got off this flight from Vegas and I'm all refreshed now. By the way, that's why I make it with cocktails because it's like counteracts hydration and you want to keep your friends hydrated. I was not doing a lot of hydration.

Maybe I'll go to cooking school. Yes. Oh my God. That would be so amazing. Would you be so happy? I mean, yeah, maybe the sky will turn green. Who knows? I do make a mean sandwich.

All right, Crystal, thank you so much for coming on. Thank you. We are giving away a pair of skinny confidential driving gloves. These driving gloves are so insane to protect you from the sun if you're driving, if you're golfing, if you're walking, a stroller, if you're doing a hot girl walk, even if you're getting your nails done. All you have to do is tell us who you want to hear on the show next. We love your feedback on my latest Instagram at Lauren Bostic.

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